"The World Must Know by Michael Berenbaum is a skillfully organized and clearly told account of the German Holocaust that consumed, with unparalleled malevolence, six million Jews and millions of innocent others -- Protestants, Catholics, Poles, Russians, Gypsies, the handicapped, and so many others, adults and children. This important book, a vital guide through the unique corridors of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., merits the widest of audiences." -- Chaim Potok, author of The Chosen and The Promise

The World Must Know documents the compelling human stories of the Holocaust as told in the renowned permanent exhibition of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Drawing on the museum's extensive collection of artifacts, archives, and eyewitness testimonies, and augmented with more than two hundred period photographs, this book serves as an enduring reminder of the moral obligations of societies and individuals.

This revised edition is enhanced with new insights and updates based on archival information that had been inaccessible to researchers until after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Communist regimes of Eastern and Central Europe. It includes new photographs, redrawn charts, a new section on the Holocaust in Greece, an updated bibliography, and a new foreword by the museum director.

Product Description

From Library Journal

To mark the occasion of the April 1993 opening of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., Berenbaum, museum project director, has written a lucid, sweeping, but not superficial historical overview of the Holocaust. Replacing a typical museum catalog, which ordinarily lauds its museum's artifacts, this book uses them to tell the awful story to which the institution is dedicated. Utilizing the museum's photographs, oral histories, and other documents, Berenbaum synthesizes an enormous quantity of material, organizing it coherently to show the gradual evolution of the war against the Jews from the perspectives of the victims, perpetrators, and bystanders, while dealing with the fundamental themes of the Jewish experience. Visually evocative and unsettling, the book, supplemented with a useful bibliography, is an excellent choice for those who are not well acquainted with the subject or who need a concise synopsis; it will inspire readers to visit the museum and will enhance the experience of those who do.- Benny Kraut, Univ. of CincinnatiCopyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.

Review

An excellent choice for those who are not well acquainted with the subject or who need a concise synopsis; it will inspire readers to visit the museum and will enhance the experience of those who do. Library Journal Clear and well organized... This beautifully produced book is worth considering for purchase in all libraries. -- Paula Rohrlick Kliatt 2006 A comprehensive coverage from before the war till the arrival of survivors in America... The book is excellent. Jewish Chronicle 2006 An outstanding memorial propelling its images beyond museum walls. California Bookwatch 2006 The photographs scattered throughout The World Must Know are sharp and clear and usually chilling... a book worthy of any good library. -- Sheldon Kirshner Canadian Jewish News 2006 An excellent introduction to the Holocaust... It belongs in all public, academic, school, and synagogue libraries. -- Barbara M. Bibel Association of Jewish Libraries Newsletter 2006

Most helpful customer reviews

This book, published by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, is the museum in book form. Filled with hundreds of photos and illustrations, some of them quite graphic, along with short but descriptive and informative written pieces on everything one would need to know about the holocaust from beginning to end, the book does a quality job of introducing the subject to the reader.This is not a scholarly text that those looking for historical detail would find useful. It is rather, a "coffee table" type book, and a very moving overview of the holocaust.Riveting, moving, emotional, and gripping are all apt descriptives of the book. Well recommended for anyone needing the necessary information and knowledge of one of the ugliest times in history. At the quoted price, a great deal!

This is a wonderful learning tool for people just begining to take interest in the holocaust as well for those who are well educated in its matters.The photogaphs are haunting but extremely well taken and truthful.The author, Michael Berenbaum, captured the truth behind the unhuman treatment the Jews recieved throughout the history of the holocaust.I reccomend you read this book because it is difficult to forget it's contents.

I did not learn much about the Holocaust in high school, so I took it upon myself to learn. At 20 years of age, I read this book cover to cover. I cried, I had nightmares, and yet I did NEED to know. This book has EVERYTHING! I recommend it, not only as a teaching tool, but as a vivid and evoking journey into the past and its disgusting and unforgettable truths. THE WORLD MUST KNOW...the title says it all.

This book is basically the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in book form. Full of powerful images and photos, plus condensed history of every major issue or event that took place in the holocaust, this is a wonderful book for general history on the holocaust. Well worth the investment.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)

Amazon.com:
27 reviews

33 of 36 people found the following review helpful

A Wonderful Book, A Horrible BookSept. 14 2007

By
Valiant S. Vetter
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Paperback

I was pleasantly surprised - while beeing shocked and horrified - that this book was NOT just a "coffee table book" of pictures from the US Holocaust Museum and Memorial - not that one would want a coffee-table book on that topic anyway. That it was published by/with the museum may give the impression it's "just" a bunch of pictures - a printed tour through the museum. That is definitely not the case.

The book tells more through the well-written text than it does through the pictures. The book would be excellent with no pictures at all - it's that well-written & edited. The pictures alone would give an "eh, so what?" reaction. Together, they are a riveting and frightening story of this terrible period in our history.

I thought I knew something about the Holocaust - and I suppose I did know as much as some people know - possibly more than most. This book opened my eyes even further.

Though I know antisemitism is unfortunately, still alive and well today - even in the United States - I had no idea how powerful it was in the years leading to World War II. This played a terrible role in the systematic destruction of the Jewish people - not only by the Nazis - but also through the cold-hearted or apathetic at best response by the rest of the world. Though most of us can show clean hands when it comes to the hands-on role of actual killing, an awful lot of us still tolerate - or even worse, practice the very kind of antisemitism that fueled the premeditated killing of so many.

This book could easily be an entire course on the Holocaust - from the earliest beginnings and history of anti-jewish action in the world, through the actual event, and up until today.

If I could afford it, I'd buy copies of this book for a couple of holocaust rejectors. If the evidence it presents does not cause them to renounce their denial of this event, then perhaps a coupl of well-placed whacks to the head will do. Either way, this book is weighty enough to accomplish the task.

Kidding aside, this is a great book - on a terrible subject.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful

This Book Changed My LifeMarch 31 1999

By
A Customer
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Paperback

I did not learn much about the Holocaust in high school, so I took it upon myself to learn. At 20 years of age, I read this book cover to cover. I cried, I had nightmares, and yet I did NEED to know. This book has EVERYTHING! I recommend it, not only as a teaching tool, but as a vivid and evoking journey into the past and its disgusting and unforgettable truths. THE WORLD MUST KNOW...the title says it all.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful

A powerful introduction to the HolocaustFeb. 23 2000

By
bradley
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Paperback

This book, published by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, is the museum in book form. Filled with hundreds of photos and illustrations, some of them quite graphic, along with short but descriptive and informative written pieces on everything one would need to know about the holocaust from beginning to end, the book does a quality job of introducing the subject to the reader.This is not a scholarly text that those looking for historical detail would find useful. It is rather, a "coffee table" type book, and a very moving overview of the holocaust.Riveting, moving, emotional, and gripping are all apt descriptives of the book. Well recommended for anyone needing the necessary information and knowledge of one of the ugliest times in history. At the quoted price, a great deal!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

An excellent guide to the history of the Holocaust as portrayed in the Holocaust Memorial MuseumMay 18 2010

By
Z Hayes
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Paperback

I was fortunate to be able to visit the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum last summer - I was deeply impressed by the exhibits and the meticulous documentation of the Holocaust. The exterior is suitably stark in appearance, and the interior compellingly brings the Holocaust "alive" for visitors. This is not a museum for really young children (I'd recommend it for ages 10 and up, with great caution). Except for the ground level exhibit, the others truly convey the horrors and realities of the Holocaust. When I saw this book at the museum bookstore, I purchased it immediately, even though I have dozens of scholarly works on the subject (having taught Holocaust history for many years whilst overseas). It was to serve as a memento of my visit to the museum (the other book I purchased was I Never Saw Another Butterfly, a beautiful, lyrical, and heartbreaking work based on the writings and artwork of Jewish children incarcerated in Terezin during WW II, many of whom later perished in the Holocaust).

"The World Must Know" aligns with the institution's mission to memorialize the Holocaust and its millions of victims. It compellingly and vividly narrates the story of how the Holocaust occurred and the horrific consequences of this period, not only then, but the lasting impact till the present day. The book is divided into three main sections, i.e.:

The Nazi Assault - there's a brief overview of the vital and thriving Jewish culture which existed in many parts of Europe before the Nazis came to power and put an end to it. The rise of the Nazis, the anti-Jewish policies, racial science, Nazi medicine, and many more are covered to some extent, made all the more compelling by the archival B&W photographs which are abundantly peppered throughout the book. This section not only documents the atrocities perpetrated against the Jews but also the oppression suffered by the handicapped, and Gentiles who dared to oppose the regime.

The Holocaust - this section documents the Holocaust as it occurred in Europe and Greece; the formation of the ghettoes (Warsaw, Lodz, Kovno); the Wannsee Conference which discussed the Final Solution to the Jewish problem and which led to the mass extermination of European Jewry; dozens of photographs of the mass killings and extermination of Jews through firing squads, mobile gas vans, and of course the infamous gassings in death camps such as Auschwitz-Birkenau, Dachau, Majdanek, etc. The photographs here clearly document the meticulous methods employed by the Nazis in their zeal to rid Europe of Jews - the deportations (how heartbreaking to see pictures of young, innocent children being taken away, almost surely to their deaths!), and the chemicals and rooms used for gassing these innocent victims. This section also includes photographs of the exhibits found in the Holocaust Memorial Museum such as the thousands of shoes confiscated from prisoners in Majdanek, and scale models of the crematoriums complete with plaster figures of victims going through the entire process from arrival-selection-undressing-gassing-cremation.

The Last Chapter - covers the heroic efforts of some communities to save the Jews such as the miraculous rescue of the Jews in Denmark; Le Chambon-Sur-Lignon, a village in the south of France which provided refuge to 5,000 Jews during WW II; individual heroes who risked everything to save Jews such as Raoul Wallenberg; and many more. It also covers the uprisings, the death marches, and finally, liberation and its aftermath (the war crimes trials at Nuremberg, displaced persons, and exodus to Palestine).

There's an extensive index at the end of the book for easy cross-referencing. What else is there to be said but that this is an excellent work which portrays the history of the Holocaust as has been archived, documented, and narrated by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Recommended!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

dispences the most information I've seenAug. 6 1999

By
dumps@csonline.net
- Published on Amazon.com

Format: Paperback

This is a wonderful learning tool for people just begining to take interest in the holocaust as well for those who are well educated in its matters.The photogaphs are haunting but extremely well taken and truthful.The author, Michael Berenbaum, captured the truth behind the unhuman treatment the Jews recieved throughout the history of the holocaust.I reccomend you read this book because it is difficult to forget it's contents.